East African nation, Uganda, has officially launched its Nyagak III hydropower project worth about $20 million with the aim to boost the country’s power supply.
The country’s Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development, in partnership with the Uganda Electricity Generation Company Limited (UEGCL), were responsible for the launch of the project, which took place on Friday in the Zombo district.
According to UEGCL, the project is expected to improve the West Nile sub-region’s total generation capacity to 9.9 MW when combined with the existing 3.5 MW Nyagak I plant.
“The feasibility studies for Nyagak I indicated that it was not initially considered viable, which is why the development of both Nyagak I and Nyagak III occurred,” said Ruth Nankabirwa, the Minister for Energy and Mineral Development
She further revealed that the project is funded by the Government of Uganda and the African Export-Import Bank (Afrexim Bank).
Technical and economic impacts
The Nyagak III plant, equipped with two 3.3 MW Horizontal Francis turbines, generates approximately 36.27 GWh annually, sufficient to power 8,500 households in Arua, Nebbi, and Zombo districts.
Speaking during the commissioning, Nankabirwa outlined the competitive generation tariff of $0.05 per kilowatt-hour (approximately UGX183), significantly lower than the $0.10 per kilowatt-hour tariff for projects with minimal government funding.
“For so long, there have been concerns about the poor quality of power supply and the inability to meet the sub-region’s demand”.
“The Nyagak III project offers one of the lowest tariffs among Uganda’s hydropower plants, delivering wide-ranging benefits for the West Nile region and significantly enhancing Uganda’s electricity supply,” said Nankabirwa.
She further explained that the project is managed by GENMAX Nyagak Ltd, a public-private partnership (PPP) with UEGCL (30%) and a private consortium of Hydromax Ltd, Dott Services, and Tata Consulting Engineers (70%).
On his part, Nicholas Agaba Rugaba, UEGCL’s project manager, noted that the project will operate for 20 years before transferring to government ownership.
The plant’s integration into the Nebbi substation enhances nationwide electricity distribution, he added.
Overcoming development challenges
Nyagak III, initially launched in 2015, faced significant delays, extending its timeline to a decade due to financial setbacks.
In Agaba’s statement, he mentioned that an international financier withdrew funding, citing land acquisition issues, which stalled progress until the Ministry of Energy and Finance committed to providing the funding.
In addition, local leaders raised concerns about delayed corporate social responsibility initiatives, such as roads and health centers.
In response, Nankabirwa said, “Four boreholes are complete, and a Health Centre III and classroom blocks are underway.”
“Despite these hurdles, the government and Afrexim Bank’s commitment ensured project success,” she added.
